Dusk
by GoG ToXiC
Summary: A tale of light and darkness. One imprisoned by life, the other by death. Yet despair fosters hope, and dreams of freedom can bloom. Sometimes to let light loose, it only takes the briefest shadow. Sometimes for the dark to escape, only the slightest glow is required. But along the way the question must be asked… When it comes to light and dark, is there truly such a difference?
1. Prologo: Lux et Tenebra

Yes, this is Nocturne/Lux, though perhaps not in the vein of your typical shipfic. The quality is not perfect, but I'm looking to get a feel for the community response while I work on the next chapter and do some editing. Enjoy!

* * *

Garen cringed as the battlefield on the screen was once more shrouded in darkness. He didn't have to hear the forthcoming scream to know whom the damned nightmare was targeting this time. It was the same person it always hunted. That knowledge didn't make his little sisters cry of terror hurt any less.

"Garen, railing." The sound of his childhood friend and heir to the Demacian throne's voice cut through the encroaching haze, prompting the warrior to release his grip on the decorative railing he didn't realize he'd been crushing.

"Sorry," he muttered, gaze still fixated on the scryglass the latest league match was currently displayed on. Jarvan followed his gaze, before quickly turning it back downwards.

"How can you watch it?" the crown prince asked, himself unwilling to bear the sight of somebody he knew so well subjected to the eternal nightmare's whims.

Garen thought for a moment. "It reminds me of why we're fighting," the Might of Demacia admit. "She shouldn't have to fight. I hope that one day, she won't have to." Once more, Garen's hands clenched into fists, though he was careful this time to avoid further damaging the Institute's furnishings. He closed his eyes as on-screen Nocturne casually discarded his sister's lifeless frame. "She should never have had to…"

In the depths of the jungles of Summoner's Rift, Nocturne also whispered. Holding Lux's dying frame to his eyes, the nightmare spoke a single word: "Tonighttt…" A spark of understanding flared in the light mage's eyes as the last vestiges of life left her body, and looking towards the skies, Nocturne laughed.

* * *

The dungeons of the Institute of War were a place subject to many a rumor. Perhaps it should not be a surprise that the "home" of some of the league's most mysterious and dangerous denizens be so unknown itself. That same aura of mystery however, was oft prone to attracting undo attention from those who were willing to do a little research. So it was that despite the intended secrecy of the place, most of the league's better infiltrators were quite well acquainted with the chamber halls, and in some cases, even the prisons residents. As it was, the league had given up on trying to discourage champions from entering, and relegated itself to simply kicking out anybody the guards might be lucky enough to catch with a warning and in the worst of cases, a stern lecture from a high summoner.

It was for those reasons that the latest unauthorized entry to the prison blocks went unnoticed by the two summoners currently on watch. Instead, they're attention was caught by a sudden storm of flickering light. Though it may have seemed odd to the uninitiated, given the setting, such occurrences were not particularly uncommon for the place, being a byproduct of the dungeons containment mechanism. Each cell in the area was sealed with the latest in techmaturgical manabarriers, similar to the built in defense system of the steam golem, Blitzcrank. A side effect of having the best containment system techmaturgy could devise however, was dealing with the storms of illuminate the barriers released upon suffering physical contact. So it was that whenever one of the dungeons few denizens was particularly irritable, the area appeared to suffer the makings of a major electrical storm until the offending resident gave up.

"Gods, you'd think they'd have given up by now, eh Jori?" the first summoner remarked, as the pair was bathed in the storm of flickering light. He was a lean man, with brown eyes and a short crop of auburn hair that gave him a roguish sort of look. "I mean, they must have realized they're never getting out, right?"

"There is not much else for them to do," the other summoner, Jori, replied. He was a large, bear of a man that wouldn't look out of place amongst the barbarian tribes of the Freljord, despite his Ionian heritage. "Can you truly say, Daveth, the you would not do the same were you in the same position?"

"I guess not," Daveth acquiesced. "Doesn't mean the lights aren't hard on the eyes." As the pair passed the apparent origin of the problem, Daveth sighed. "Oy, Nocturne, can you stop with the light show? I'll bring you out on the field and you can kill some people." The nightmare's red eyes briefly fixated on the summoner's own, and Daveth couldn't hold back a shiver. The lights didn't stop. "Well fuck you too then," he muttered as he and Jori continued passed the eternal nightmare's containment field.

"Speaking of Nocturne, did you see the latest match, Daveth?"

Daveth laughed. "You kidding me Jori? Who didn't see the last match? It's not everyday they make the challenger matches public."

"I suppose it maybe was an unnecessary question," Jori admit.

"There's no maybe to it, Jori," Daveth chuckled. "You gotta feel bad for Lux though, having Nocturne constantly at her throat." He closed his eyes, shivering slightly at the thought. "What do you think Jori?" The summoner opened his eyes, turning slightly in expectation of his fellow summoner's response. Jori replied with a scream. Daveth spun around, only to see his companion held in the air before him, a wicked serrated blade protruding from his chest.

"Oh no," Daveth whispered, stumbling backwards as darkness encompassed the room.

"I don't know how Jori," the blade's bearer hissed, tossing the body to the side, "but I would feel much worse for you." The blade raised, and Daveth closed his eyes.

Lux started blankly at the two bodies on the flo or. They belonged to two fairly low ranking summoners if her memory served her correctly. "Did you kill them?" she asked her companion. There weren't any markings on the bodies, but then, she didn't think there had been on any of his other victims either.

"They believe themselves dead, but they'll wake… eventually."

Lux turned, slightly surprised. "You let them live? That's unlike you."

"They are no longer my enemy. Their deaths are… not currently required."

Lux simply nodded. She had decided long ago that she wouldn't delve into her partners reasoning, other than what he himself told her. He understood her in a way no one else could - she didn't need to know precisely why. "Let's go then. Hop in and we'll get out of here." Her companion nodded, and Lux watched as his corporeal form began to fade into something less tangible.

"Are you sure?" Anybody else would not have detected the note of concern in the entity's rasp. A few months back, she wouldn't have either. "We can still force our way out."

Lux shook her head. "I don't want us to fight through my friends and family. Nocturne… I trust you."

For a single, drawn out moment, their eyes locked, and the nightmare seemed to gaze straight into her soul. Then finally, his faded form began to drift forwards. "Embrace the darkness," the nightmare whispered, before finally, Nocturne's form faded completely. For a moment, there was only silence. Then the light mage screamed.

* * *

So yeah, I'm looking to have this around 30k words, possibly longer. Expect the next chapter hopefully soon, and I really hope some of you guys can provide some feed back on what you'd like to see, what you wouldn't like, and what you think of what's here.

Also, thanks goes to Supreme Distraction for talking through some of this stuff with me and for providing entertaining conversation during the writing process. If you have any love of shipping whatsoever, you should check her work out.


	2. Primus: Somnus

_Hmm... So first real chapter here, and I just want to say that your guys' response to my prologue was amazing. Now we're going to take a little trip back in time, and see just how this all got started. Also, I hate this site for removing my indents._

* * *

Lux sighed as she gazed into the mirror. Staring down her reflection, it felt like she'd aged years in only a few days. She certainly didn't feel like she was a pretty sight. Stiff muscles ached as the sorceress rolled back her shoulders, dull eyes closing slightly in satisfaction as the joints cracked and popped. Her hair was a mess, she realized, golden strands sticking outwards haphazardly and frayed at the tips. It had been another sleepless night for the light mage, her fifth in the week since the Eternal Nightmare's "induction" into the League of Legends.

She grimaced at the thought of the fiend. Every match she shared with it, the creature unearthed memories long ago buried and brought back fears from so many years past. It made the last week almost unbearable, reminding the young mage just how much of her life was an act, and just how much she wanted out. Nocturne, the damnable thing, returned to her the hope from her childhood, and it was utter agony. She'd already spent ten years coming to terms with the fact that there was none, and wasn't a nightmare supposed to take hope away?

Groaning, Lux conjured a flickering globe of light in her palms, willing it to just suck way all these old emotions and let her continue as she always had. But the lucent singularity simply glowed as it always had, and with a cry of frustration, the mage hurled the orb against the wall of her room, cringing slightly when it exploded and scorched away a sizeable portion of the paint covering the wall. "Damned light," the sorceress muttered. Then she collapsed backwards onto the queen-sized bed that seemed both a blessing and a curse, lying still atop the silken covers.

And Lux let herself cry.

* * *

It was him. The one. The reason. The warden of this solitary confinement. The man that Nocturne would tear apart piece by piece until only a broken spirit remained. Hissing, the wraith stabbed at the flickering barrier that separated them. The feedback was blinding.

"Happy to see me, are we Nocturne?" the summoner chuckled, always mocking, always condescending.

"I will be free of this shard," the nightmare hissed in return. "And when I do, there will be no place to hide. For you, there shall only be dark, and eventually, death."

The man laughed. "That's a good way of viewing things, my friend. It's good to have goals in life. But I'm going to let you in on a little secret, just between you and me." The summoner moved closer as if to whisper, showing his utter disregard for the specters threats. "You will never be free. You will fight here eternally, until the day the league crumbles, and when that day comes you may rest assured that I will have found a way to end your ghost of an existence. Permanently."

Nocturne growled, before turning to face the other way. "You will die, summoner. Of that, _you_ may rest assured_._"

"I look forward to the day," the summoner said, brushing off the threat. "Now quit moping; you've got another match within the hour. You get to kill people, and I think that's cause to celebrate, don't you?"

The nightmare could only growl.

"Well farewell to you, my nightmare friend. I'd stay and chat longer, but I have things I need to be doing. Life, freedom, and all that, y'know? Well… you used to know anyway." With that, the summoner laughed, and walked off.

And Nocturne let himself howl.

* * *

Lux stood at the entrance to her quarters, having composed herself some few minutes back. She knew she'd be encountering Nocturne more and more in the coming days. The nightmare was a new combatant in Valoran's favourite bloodsport, and its popularity amongst the summoners that ran it was ever-rising. She knew that as they encountered each other on the Fields of Justice the damned nightmare would continue rekindling more memories and emotions from the past - memories that she'd rather not have to deal with - and if it didn't stop soon, the sorceress knew it was only a matter of time before she did something she'd regret.

It was clear that she needed to do something to address her issues, but the only apparent solution that came to mind was... Well, absurd was one word for it. Sighing, Lux bent the light surrounding her body so as to shield it completely from the prying eyes of others, rendering herself completely invisible. Still, desperate times called for desperate measures, and really, it wasn't like the containment facilities had decent security anyway. Unseen, she slipped from her quarters into the Institute's empty halls.

The walk to the entrance of the League's containment facilities wasn't a long one. Conveniently, the place had been constructed near what was unofficially known as the Demacian wing of the institute, the opening stairwell only a few doors down from Lux's own residence. Naturally, the entrance was sealed by several high-level arcane barriers, no doubt put in place by one of the higher-level summoners to keep intruders like herself out of the place, but for an accomplished infiltrator such as herself, those barriers had never been a problem. Setting to work on dismantling the shields, the light mage had to give the designer credit - it took her several minutes to completely nullify them without tripping the numerous built in alarms. "They're learning," Lux muttered to herself as she finished her work, somewhat irked at the delay as she crept down the stairs.

The lighting down the staircase, as per the norm, was terrible, and Lux idly wondered how it was no summoners had yet died traversing the treacherous hall. The damned thing seemed more daunting every time she "visited." Still, she didn't dare conjure a globe of light to illuminate her path down. Even the league's laughable security force wasn't blind, and she didn't doubt that a summoner would immediately recognize a lucent singularity drifting through the air. So she continued her path down as she had before, bathed in the darkness of descending corridors, with only her thoughts for company.

Thankfully, the journey down to the complex proper remained a short one, though the suffocating halls and lack of natural light made the trip seem far greater than it actually was. Lux stifled a sigh of relief as the area before her was suddenly lit up by the light of the dozens of shimmering manabarriers that sealed many dangerous beasts and a single particular league "champion" within. She didn't know exactly where Nocturne was in this maze of arcane convicts, but she didn't doubt she would know when she found him. The Eternal Nightmare had an aura about itself, one that brought feelings of helplessness and despair to those close enough. Ergo, if she just wandered the dungeons until she felt like slitting her wrists, she'd probably found her mark. Idly she wondered if she hadn't lost it already.

Setting off before she had time to second guess herself, the sorceress quickly began making her way past the rows and rows of containment blocks, unphased by the growls of their dissatisfied occupants, and actually somewhat comforted by the occasional flashes of feedback brought about by their strikes at the barriers that restrained them. The barriers were strong; she certainly wasn't in any danger from the dungeon residents. After passing dozens of the cells to no avail, however, the light mage found herself kicking at the ground in frustration, her patience growing thin - which was a terrible sign because she was never impatient.

It was entirely possible, the mage realized, that Nocturne had never been kept her in the first place. It had never actually been mentioned where the nightmare had been imprisoned, and until now she had always just assumed that he would be here. Suddenly angry - abnormally so - the light mage resisted the urge to scream in frustration. And then she collapsed.

The spirit-crushing aura snuck up on her, seeming to wrap around her very essence like a suffocating blanket, smothering her in its darkness. The sensation of helplessness hit her all at once, and suddenly, the mage was gone, the dank halls of the Institute's containment center replaced by open-air and a massive stone and marble building. Lux recognized it immediately. Quickly she glanced around at her surroundings, the once-over confirming that this was in fact the Crownguard estate, though not as it had been when she last visited. Something about the place felt… off. Then she heard singing. It was too far away to make out the words, but she would recognize the voice anywhere - How could she not recognize a voice that was her own?

"No... Not this," she pleaded.

_Yesss… Go to it… _The world seemed to darken as the words echoed through the halls.

"I… I can't," she whispered, attempting to back away from the distant voice that was still so painfully familiar.

_Go! _This time, it wasn't a request, and despite herself, Lux followed.

It wasn't long before the sorceress found herself at a very familiar door, the only thing that stood between her and the person she desperately wanted to run away from. She knew what she would find inside - she could remember the room perfectly. She knew exactly who see would see were she to pull the latch and open the door, and by the gods she was not opening that door. Her host in this world of dreams had a different idea.

_Open it… _the voice hissed, and Lux knew she had no way to dispute. A shaking hand reached out to pull up on an ornate latch, and slowly, the door drifted open, revealing a room she could never forget. The inside was exactly as she remembered it, right down to the scorch mark on her dresser that acted as a permanent reminder of her first experiments with her magical abilities. The room was tidy, the way she had always kept it, all of the owner's possessions neatly tucked away into various drawers and shelves. The carpeted floor and brightly painted walls gave the room a warm and inviting feel, and bouncing atop the mattress of a decorative four-poster bed was a young girl, a mirror image of herself a decade prior.

Golden strands flowed back in waves as the girl bobbed her head ever so slightly, eyes that Lux already knew were blue closed as she sang a cheerful song to herself, blissfully unaware of the machinations of the crown taking place on her doorstep. Unaware for now, Lux knew, but not much longer. Her heart broke as she started at the past version of herself, so innocent and unaware, and vaguely she realized that at some point tears had begun to drip down her face. Wiping the droplets from her eyes, the sorceress froze as she realized that within the short span of seconds, the young girl that was herself had abandoned her perch on the bed and darted out of the light mage's zone of vision.

"Hi there!" the light mage jumped as her own voice, albeit her own much younger voice, greeted her from behind. "My name's Lux!" the younger her continued. "What's yours?"

She couldn't help but smile at the ever-present cheer in the younger girl's tone. "My name? Lu-" she hesitated. "Light," she amended. "My name is Light."

"Light," the younger girl echoed. "That's a pretty name. Can you make light with magic too?"

"Me? I'm afraid not," the older Lux lied. Then out of curiosity, "Do you know what happens today, Lux?"

"Nope," the girl replied. Then, "Does big brother come back home today?"

"I'm afraid not," the sorceress replied. "But you'll see him soon. Today…" She swallowed. "Today is the day you join the Demacian military."

The younger her just laughed, the way she'd always used to. "Big brother is already in the military, and he said I'd never have to fight." She cocked her head slightly, as if in thought, before continuing with a confident smirk. "He promised that if they try to make me fight bad guys, then he'll just fight twice as many so I don't have to."

Despite herself, Lux couldn't help but laugh at that. That... was a good memory. Then her smile wavered. "Just remember that if your big brother can't keep his promise… you shouldn't blame him. Sometimes people make promises, and they don't realize they won't be able to keep them.

"Okay!" the girl smiled. "You're nice, Miss Light." That brought a sad smile to the older mage's face.

Suddenly another voice interrupted their conversation, resonating from a small crystal built into the chamber doors.

"Lux dear," another familiar voice started, and the older mage's smile immediately waned. "We have some guests that would like to meet you. Could you come down to the front gate please?"

"Okay!" the younger Lux agreed. "See you later Light! I have to go talk to some of mommy's friends!" And then the girl was out the door, running down the halls that Lux still remembered perfectly, to a gate she'd never forgotten, to the people who would haunt her memories so many years later. She didn't bother following her. She was intimately familiar with the rest of this day - it had haunted her dreams ever since. Now she just had to deal with the being that had made her relive it.

"Okay Nocturne," she called out. "I've played your game. Now what?"

Suddenly, the world began to shake, the walls of her home crumbling around her. The sky peeled away, a seemingly infinite blackness taking its place. Eventually, even the earth beneath her feet faded to nothingness, leaving the mage alone in an empty void.

_Why have you come? _It was the same voice from before. Now there could be no doubt.

Though she did her best to hide it, the fear from before was once more beginning to set in. Still, she steadied herself and answered, "I want to talk."

_Talk?_ It seemed to catch the nightmare off guard that she would seek it out for something so innocuous. Then she took a step back as a spectral figure seemed to fade into existence before her. "Very well," Nocturne, rasped, now bearing the all-too familiar form she recognized from the Fields of Justice. "Let us talk."

* * *

_Longer authour's note now. First off, a massive thanks goes to Supreme Distraction for drawing up some amazing art for this fic. You probably saw it at the top of the page here, since it's now the story's official cover picture. But get this, not only is Distraction an amazing artist, but she's also an amazing writer as well. The reason I started this up, really. You can check out her work with League of Legends (and other fandoms, which I also can't recommend enough) here: u/1535956/Supreme-Distraction_

_Second, I've been kind of getting the feeling that my scenes seem a little rushed. If you guys could confirm or deny that for me, that'd be great. And if you can confirm it, some tips would be very welcome. I'm still learning, and probably always will be. There's always room to improve :P_

_Finally, I've got an obligatory disclaimer that I sort of forgot to include in the prologue. Oops. I don't own League of Legends, Riot games, Lux, Nocturne, or any other characters and places that I'm using. Don't sue me._

_..._

_Also, I'm very sad that nobody caught the blatant reference to Dragon Age last chapter. Oh well._


	3. Secundus: Somnium

_Huh. This came a lot later then expected. I totally forgot what musical theatre does to ones schedule during the rehearsal and performance weeks, and then I got a new computer for Christmas. Needless to say, figuring out just what I could do with 16gb of RAM (!) kinda sucked a lot of my time away. Anyway, here's the new chapter, and I'm hoping to keep the rest of the chapters around this length (and not thirty days in the making). I'm probably going to go over this later and do some more editing, but I REALLY wanted to get something out for you guys, and I didn't give it the best look over before publishing. Anyway, this carries on from where the last chapter left off, and yeah. Enjoy!_

* * *

For a moment there was only silence, as blue eyes met black in a brief contest of wills. Then from Lux, "I want you to stop."

There was no need for clarification. The nightmare had known the mage's desire long before she even set foot in the dungeons that housed him. The answer was as brief as the question. "I cannot." It didn't appear to surprise the mage that the wraith would deny her. But then, that in itself was not surprising. But Nocturne wouldn't expect her to give up that easy, and glaring into his eyes, the magus did not disappoint him.

"Then we are at an impasse," Lux stated, not breaking eye contact.

"Perhaps…" the nightmare began. "Or perhaps not." That grabbed the girl's attention. "For what reason do you wish me to stop?"

"I-" Nocturne cut her off. He already knew the answer.

"You wish to escape from your past… your present. But perhaps you should not. Perhaps… You should escape from your future."

"Future?" Then indignantly, "For what reason would I wish to escape my future?" Denial. This was good. He could work with this.

"Do not attempt to fool me, mage. You're more caged than I am. I have _seen _that which you have buried deepest; I _know _what lies within your heart. You say you seek freedom from your past, but it is your people, your duties… your country that you seek to escape. You yearn for the freedom of which you have long been denied, and…" The specter paused, as if to give her time to catch up, then: "You are not alone."

For a moment there was silence, then a spark of realization. "You want me to free you," the sorceress realized.

"I want you to free both of us."

The nightmare did not wait for a response as he let his presence recede from the mage's mind. He had seen the storm behind the girl's eyes. She would flee, no doubt, but she would be back again, and soon. Indeed, when Nocturne returned to his physical form he could no longer sense the light mage's presence, but he knew the seeds of doubt had taken root. All beings sought freedom in one way or another; it was only a matter of time before Lux returned.

Yes, he could bide his time, and when the mage returned, Nocturne knew she would agree to his terms. He had promised her the key to the cage that life imprisoned her in, just as she could show him the key to his. It would take time of course - plans had to be made, favours made good upon - but when it came to matters of freedom, such costs were trivial. In time he would be free of the crystal chains that restrained him, and then… well, one man in particular would be made to suffer. In the wake of his escape, there would be paranoia, and in paranoia his captors would find only death.

Night terrors had always been his strong suit.

* * *

Lux wandered the institute grounds, deep in thought. The sun had set some time ago, the last rays of daylight and leaving the ground bathed in darkness. Not an oppressive darkness like the aura radiated by Nocturne, but rather a calming dark; a dark that reflected the simple peace of night. The lack of natural light from the sun didn't bother her - she wasn't some solari zealot - as the light of the full moon and lucent singularity bobbing beside her was more than enough to provide vision of her surroundings

The institute grounds were perhaps not the safest place for her to be spending the night, what with the more… wild champions that roamed the surrounding woodlands. Many of the League's more primal inclined champions had claimed sections of it as their own territory, and did not take well to most intruders. Still, the mage wasn't particularly worried. She was far away from the swath of land that Warwick had claimed as his own, and Teemo had already been suspended from guard duty a few days back. She _was_ dangerously close to the area typically controlled by the Voidreaver, but Kha'Zix had become surprisingly 'tame' in recent months. If rumors were to be believed, his interactions with the spider queen, Elise, played a large role in that. She didn't doubt that there was a _very _interesting story to be had there.

Lux shook her head. Wondering about some of the… odd pairings the League had brought into existence wasn't helping her deal with the fact that she had no idea what to do about her situation with the Eternal Nightmare. Though she hated to admit it, Nocturne's words had struck a chord within her - one that was resonating very deeply. Though she was loathe to admit it, the idea of just running away from Demacia held a disturbing sense of appeal. Nocturne, may the gods damn him to hell for being so, was correct when he told he what she was truly running from. She knew exactly what her future would entail if nothing changed: more fighting and espionage, all for a country that had taken everything away from her before she could even understand what she was losing. But would getting that back and changing her future be worth giving up everything she'd ever known?

Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. Logically, it was senseless. She had a home in Demacia, duties to her people and family that she was honour-bound to uphold. A nation she was sworn to serve. To throw it all away would go against everything she'd ever been told she stood for. But then, "she'd been told" were the key words there, weren't they? She'd never been asked what she wanted to stand for, but if asked, the Measured Tread certainly wouldn't have been the answer. Still, as much as she might dislike the nation, there were still people she cared about within, and could she truly just abandon them?

"Questions of freedom ever-have the most difficult answers, do they not?"

Lux froze as the Scorn of the Moon spoke up behind her. "Diana," the greeted, turning slowly.

"Luxanna," the other woman replied.

For a moment there was only silence, then from Lux: "I was looking for you."

Diana nodded. "You've found me."

"More like you found me," the light mage replied. "How did you know?"

"I see what the moon sees, and I hear what the moon hears. And tonight the moon is full."

"That's not cryptic or anything," Lux muttered, nodding her head as though the renegade's words made perfect sense.

The assassin let a gentle smirk play across her lips at the comment. "You do not believe me," she chuckled. "Or perhaps the moon's blessing is simply beyond your understanding." She quelled the light mage's look of indignation with a soft smile. "It does not matter. I will help you, though the decision you make must be yours alone."

Lux let a relieved sigh escape her lips, and when Diana held out a hand and beckoned her to follow, she did not hesitate to fall in step behind her. The moon mage set a brisk pace, leading a path upwards across the wooded hills of the Institute of War. Analyzing their passing surroundings, Lux quickly realized Diana was leading her to the highest point in the area: an old forgotten temple that rested atop a small mountain. She didn't understand why the mage would choose such a place as their destination, but perhaps Diana knew more about its history than she.

It was not long before the duo neared the old temple. Though long, the path upwards was clear and not difficult for two champions of the Institute. The place was in remarkably good shape, Lux realized as they approached. The structure, though worn with time, appeared undamaged, as though its use had never stopped. Watching the reverence with which Diana approached, she realized that might very well be the case. Moving closer, Lux noticed more details that her previous inspections had missed. The temple walls seemed to possess the slightest sheen of sparkling silver where they were bathed in the moons glow, and faded to the barest of appearances, what could only be images of a crescent moon adorned the twin columns that made up the temples entryway. Gently, she placed a hand upon one of the columns. Despite the cold weather, the stone was warm. There was clearly magic at work here, but despite her abilities, Lux couldn't see even the barest makings of an enchantment.

"The warmth… It comes from the moon," Diana shared, as she beckoned the mage to enter. "It is an indication of her continued protection of this place." Lux followed the renegade in, not bothering to wipe a confused expression from her face. Inside, the temple was bare. An empty room, its walls unadorned and its space occupied by only a simple stone dais that sat at the temples center, unassuming. "This temple once belonged to the Lunari," Diana explained as they entered. "It is the reason I came to the League of Legends. As long as I fight their battles, the summoners ensure its preservation."

"I was under the impression this temple's history had been lost to time," Lux admit.

"Aye, and so the summoners at the time were too. Fortunately the Solari were not so thorough in their extermination of Lunari history as they were its people. Many of our temples and treasures survived their purge."

"And you were worried that… Leona would destroy it if she discovered it?" Lux hazarded to guess.

"Leona?" The Lunari laughed. "Even if she'd known about this place, she would never herself destroy it. It is not in her nature, and she knows what it means to me."

"But I thought you two were-"

"-Hated foes?" Diana completed. "That fate has made us enemies does not mean there is hate. When the moon allows it, I am quite fond of Leona's company." Before Lux could inquire further, Diana changed the subject. "Now as fascinating as Lunari history may be, I know it is not the reason you have sought me out tonight."

Lux hesitated for a moment. She still wasn't certain she could trust the moon mage. Then again, she had been the one to seek her out, hadn't she? Finally she asked, "Was it worth leaving? The Solari I mean?"

A spark of realization crossed the renegade's face. "So that is what troubles you. However, to answer that question you must first know what the Solari was to me. The Solari… They were my home, but I was not at home with them. The people I held close to me were what made it home, but the manner in which the elders dictated my life kept it from being home, if that makes any sense?" Lux nodded in confirmation.

"When I left, I was freed of those shackles and yet those I cared about never truly turned away. Though I may not see them much, it is enough to know they are there. To answer your question Lux… Not once have I ever held regret for my decision to leave the Solari."

"That… gives me much to think about," Lux allowed.

"I imagine it would," Diana affirmed. "However, I may be able to make your decision easier." The Lunari raised her crescent blade to the stone dais, and with the blade etched a strange symbol onto the surface. For a moment, it seemed as though nothing would happen. Then a loud grinding noise began echoing bean their feet, the whole temple seeming to shake around them almost as if the ground itself was shifting beneath their feet. Which, Lux realized with a start, was exactly what was happening.

Looking down, the mage could see that what she'd previously taken to be a simple circle carved into the stone floor was actually the edge of some sort of elevator platform, this made evident by the fact that they were no standing on a surface a foot above the rest of the temple floor. "Diana?" Lux asked, nervously.

"The platform is safe," the older mage assured her. "I have used it many times before."

"But-" Lux pointed at the steadily approaching ceiling above them, which was decidedly lacking in entrances from below.

"A protective illusion," Diana explained. "You did not believe this entire temple was but a single room, did you?" Upon seeing the light mage's unconvinced face, she simply said, "Trust me."

_Well, I suppose getting crushed against the ceiling would at least make everything much simpler. _Without much in the way of other options, Lux stood where she was and took the time to take a deeper look at her situation. Leaving Demacia would mean that for the first time in twelve years, she could be free of the expectations that had dictated her life; she could be free of the regimented, patriotic existence she'd been forced into for so long. She would surely be branded a traitor if she left, likely forbidden from entering the city walls, and possibly even hunted down by the nation. However… she didn't think the people cared about would act the same. Garen wouldn't hate her, regardless of how attached he might be to the Demacian values, and Jarvan had always been a friend before a prince. Shyvannah would understand - probably - and Vayne and Quinn likely couldn't care less. They'd never been particularly attached to the nation anyway.

She supposed that when she thought on the subject with a clear mind, it really wasn't a difficult decision to make. Nocturne, however, complicated things substantially. Before his capture, the Eternal Nightmare had killed dozens of summoners, in a manner that was almost untraceable. Should the nightmare be released from its prison, it was more than likely its killing spree would continue. But then, he hadn't exactly seemed murderous in their prior conversation, not in the psychotic "kill people because it's fun" manner somebody like the Demon Jester exemplified anyway. Nocturne, had seemed much more like a being driven by a focused, overwhelming hatred. The same kind she would see in Jarvan's eyes whenever the prince encountered Swain, or that guided Vayne's actions whenever she hunted down the nighttime fiends of the kingdom. It was quite possible that there was more to the nightmare's background than the summoners had let on. It wouldn't be the first time they'd hidden information regarding champions. It was something to look into, she decided as the elevator passed through the apparent ceiling and she found herself decidedly not crushed against the stone.

Instead, the mage found herself in a vast domed chamber, sealed entirely except for a small opening at the very top from which moonlight gently trickled in. The curving walls were highly reflective, glowing with the soothing light of the moon and even the air itself seemed tinted with a silver glimmer. Glancing downwards, she gasped. Surrounding the platform they'd entered upon, the floor seemed to be made entirely of mirror, the reflective surface displaying a swirling maelstrom of images that were impossible to decipher, but awe-inducing nonetheless.

"It's quite the sight, isn't it?" Diana asked. "Even now familiar as I am with the chamber, it still manages to take my breath away."

"It's beautiful," Lux agreed, mesmerized. "But I don't understand. What is it?"

"The Chamber of Visions," Diana answered. "The moon's greatest gift to the Lunari people. It's a window into the past, and the present." To the light mage's confused expression, she explained, "It is what I referred to when I said I see what the moon sees, though perhaps 'I see what its light sees' may have been more accurate."

"So… It's scryglass?"

"Similar perhaps," the Lunari allowed, "But very different. This chamber requires no arcane device to capture and transmit images, and no power source to continue functioning. It simply displays what is seen by the light of the moon, as the moon sees necessary."

"That would allow you to see almost anything!" Lux realized. "How is it you don't already know every secret the world has to offer?"

"And so you stumble upon the drawback of this chamber, if there could truly be considered one. I may see what the moon sees, but I only see it should she will it to be so. I have little choice in what the chamber shows me, but I trust the moon to show me what is necessary. Let me show you." With a flourish, Diana swept her crescent blade through the lone moon beam that filtered through the ceiling before touching it to the reflective glass beneath them. The impact sent a ripple through the maelstrom of different colours, and gradually the chaotic swirling slowed, and then stopped entirely, a clear image of what Lux recognized as one of the Institute training halls taking shape. In it, Lux could see an auburn haired woman performing a complex series of stretches.

Her training wear was tight fitting, and clung to her body in a manner that left very little to the imagination. It took a moment for the mage to realize she was actually looking at Leona, the Solari's appearance so very different when she wasn't clad in the heavy, ornate armour of her people. Lux could help but notice that the exercises showed off the woman's toned body _very _well, and Lux couldn't help but stare slightly as the Solari went through the motions. She was shaken out of her trance however, when Leona seemed to look directly up, as if she could see them in the same way they could see her, and smiled.

Naturally, this prompted her to wonder if the gazed upon were _supposed _to realize they were being analyzed from afar, but as Lux turned to ask her companion "How can she tell?" she realized that the Lunari's pale features were coloured as though lit ablaze with fire, and her eyes were doing their very best to look anywhere but the reflective screen below. "Diana?" she asked, somewhat worried because she couldn't recall _ever_ seeing the other mage blush.

"It's nothing," the other mage assured her, not stuttering in the least to her credit. Then under her breath, "It would seem the moon also has a sense of humour on its good days." She quickly dispelled the image, though it seemed to Lux that there was definitely some hesitation there, and moved right on to acting as though nothing had ever happened. "Anyways," she continued. "I'm sure you're wondering why I would show you such a treasured Lunari device."

"Among other things," Lux replied with a devious smirk.

Diana pointedly ignored the insinuation. "Just know that if what I have seen of that past, through this chamber, is to be of any indication, there may be more to the capture and subsequent champion-hood of our resident nightmare than the summoners involved would have us believe.

Lux started at that. "How did you know-?"

"That this had to do with Nocturne?" Lux simply nodded in response. "I didn't know for certain until now." This time it was the Lunari's turn to smirk. "That said, the moon provided some substantial hints. Watching you sneak out of the containment facilities muttering obscenities about a 'damned nightmare' didn't leave much room for error."

Lux grimaced. She hadn't really bothered with stealth on her way out. That was a mistake she couldn't afford to make again. "Well do you know what any of that information might be?"

"I couldn't tell you," the Lunari replied. "And even if I could, I would not. I told you once before that this is your decision, and your decision alone to make. I can play no more role in shaping your future than I already have, just as I had no one to help me shape mine. You must discover the truth of the nightmare's past on your own, or not at all, and you must choose what you do with that information on your own as well. I… Am sorry I cannot do more for you."

"It's alright," Lux replied, a solemn nod accompanying her words. "I might not like it, but I can understand it."

"Then you should have nothing to fear going forward." Diana swiped her blade once more across the dais, and the platform lurched downwards. "Now come, though I have nothing more to show you, allow me the pleasure of walking you out."

"Of course," Lux agreed, flashing the Lunari a slight smile. When she sought out the Scorn of the Moon, she hadn't expected much. Perhaps a frown of dismissal as the mage brushed her aside. Instead she been gifted with not only knowledge, but confidence to move forward as well. She owed the moon mage much, and it was a debt she would be certain to repay if Diana ever needed her assistance. Until that time however, she would make certain the moon mage's words didn't go to waste. She would do what research she could, and when she was ready, she would seek out Nocturne once more.

Stepping out the temple's open entrance, she paused when she heard a quiet "wait." Turning, she saw Diana with her hand outstretched, a pendant dangling from her fingers. Looking the item over, she realized it had a carving of the moon on one side and the sun on the other. "Take this with you," Diana insisted. "It's an old talisman from more peaceful times. It carries blessings of protection from both the sun _and _the moon. It's not fitting for me to bear it, but perhaps it might bring you some luck?" Diana chuckled. "You may need it."

Smiling, Lux accepted the talisman, taking it from the Lunari's fingers and slipping it over her neck. It was warm to the touch, she realized, as her hands brushed over the ornate bronze the pendant was carved from. "Diana… Thank you."

"I should be thanking you," Diana replied, a warm smile adorning her features. "It's not often I have the opportunity to converse with others like a… normal person. I miss it. But if you could do me one favour before you leave?"

"Certainly," Lux agreed.

"Please keep the nature of this place a secret. "I'm not worried about Leona - or even the Solari as a whole - but there are others…"

Lux understood immediately. There were many who would look to use this… Chamber of Visions as a weapon, and even if the… moon prevented them as Diana said, the temple would undoubtedly suffer from the attempts. "I won't tell a soul," she promised.

"Thank you," Diana whispered. "Know that from here onwards you travel with the moon's blessing, and as her scion, my own. I hope she guides you to find what you're looking for.

"She will." Diana had given her the confidence she needed to pursue a new future. But now walking away from the temple of the moon and making her way back to the Institute of War, uncertainty still lingered. There remained a nightmare's intentions to discern, and possibly it seemed, a conspiracy to unravel. So she had confidence, yes, but whether or not she'd place it well was information yet to come.

Unspoken, she continued her affirmation: _I hope._

* * *

_So yeah, kinda not really dark or anything, but umm... WORLDBUILDING. Also, throwing in nods to a couple of other really good fics on the site (fics which should REALLY update *cough* Insatiable *cough*) and trying my best not to let my shippy nature take the fic over. I let it make its mark on this chapter, and now it shouldn't bother me through the rest of the story xD. Anyway, story's probably going to take a turn for the darker soon, and if you were disappointed by the lack of Nocturne in this chapter, rest assured that he'll probably have much more presence in the next chapter. And hopefully be scarier. If I'm any good at writing things scary. Anybody want to help a guy that gets scared easy write something scary? Or even somewhat dark and creepy but not really scary?_

_Err... yeah. Anyway, I don't own what Riot owns, and Riot probably doesn't own what I own (not that that matters here) and neither of us own what you own. Except your soul. Unless your British. #CWTIDDTHR_

_Also, the response to last chapter was amazing. You guys are all awesome and yeah I'm rambling and Mass Effect and I should go._


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